Some states have more robust employment laws than others, but many of the laws in Hawaii align with federal rules. For example, the overtime rule in Hawaii applies when an hourly or non-exempt salary worker puts in more than 40 hours in a particular workweek.
Hourly and non-exempt workers should receive 150% of their standard hourly wage for any time in excess of 40 hours that they work. Some workers will put in the time but do not get the extra money in their paycheck.
Their employer might point to a company policy that says no one can have overtime without management or corporate approval. Can they deny you your wages because you didn’t have a chance to send an e-mail to management?
Once you put in the time, they need to pay for it
If the company has a strict policy of never approving overtime, then they need to have appropriate protocols in place to prevent workers from needing to put in more than 40 hours a week. They may need to have extra staff on call in case someone can’t work. Otherwise, you could end up working a double shift when you’ve already put in 39 hours that week.
If you have done the work, they have to pay you according to federal and state law for that time. They cannot deny you overtime pay for those extra hours, nor can they alter your time record to push your number of hours worked back down under 40.
If the company did either of these things, they have violated your basic pay rights and important employment laws. Knowing your rights can help you stand up to a wage violation by your employer.